ATLANTA -- Michigan thought it had slayed Wisconsin in Madison, but had its heart broken on a half-court buzzer-beater. The team flew back to Ann Arbor crestfallen after losing in overtime.

One player hopped off the team bus and went straight to the team's practice facility, putting up shots until the early morning hours.

That player did the same thing after arriving back from a loss at Michigan State, and a loss at Indiana, and a loss at Ohio State.

That player is Caris LeVert. And those shots paid off.

Sometimes the forgotten man among the Wolverines' talented freshman class, LeVert was huge Saturday night in a 61-56 win against Syracuse in the Final Four. He hit two timely 3-pointers in the first half and finished with eight points off the bench -- key production with starters Trey Burke and Nik Stauskas combining for seven points on 1-of-13 shooting.

LeVert -- who nearly redshirted this season -- performed well enough to take Stauskas' place on the court in the closing moments against Syracuse. He was on the court as Michigan advanced to its first title game since 1993.

"It’s a proud papa moment," said assistant coach LaVall Jordan, who has overseen LeVert's development. "You work with a kid, you watch him, you know how bad he wants it, you know how much his teammates believe in him and you believe him.

"And when he has his moment, you can’t do nothin’ besides pump your fist."

LeVert was the final piece to the Wolverines' 2012 recruiting class, but along with Spike Albrecht, was overshadowed by the better known Mitch McGary, Glenn Robinson III and Nik Stauskas.

In fact, LeVert originally was expected to redshirt this season. Michigan always loved his length and athleticism, but his offensive game was raw and his frame wasn't filled out.

But he could play defense as well as anyone on the team, and eventually shoved his way into the rotation before the Bradley game.

LeVert remains known mostly as a defensive specialist. He hadn't even scored a point in the past 35 days, and hadn't hit a 3-pointer since nailing two on Feb. 24 against Illinois.

He broke both droughts against Syracuse, coming up big when Michigan needed him most.

The Wolverines hit just four of their first 15 shots and had trouble solving the 2-3, which was shading toward Stauskas and Burke. LeVert entered with 12:12 left in the half and promptly hit a 3-pointer, then another that gave Michigan a lead it would not relinquish.

"I don’t remember the last time I knocked down a shot," Levert said after the game with a smile. "It felt good to see a couple go through, especially with the way they were really keyed in on Trey and Tim out there.

"They found me in the corner a couple times and I just tried to knock down the shots."

It's the payoff for months of hard work for LeVert, including shooting sessions that lasted until 1 or 2 a.m.

"Caris is probably in the gym more than anybody on this team, just getting shots up," senior captain Josh Bartelstein said. "It was hard for him early in the year, when the other four freshmen were playing and he was not. But he just stuck with it, and now he’s in the spotlight."

Sophomore forward Jon Horford said LeVert is among the most improved players on the team.

"Caris is so good, people don’t even know it," he said. "This kid is going to be a force in the future, I’m telling you. We’ve been putting him in the tournament for defensive stops ... but his offensive game is really excellent as well.

"Some big, big buckets down the stretch. And that doesn’t surprise us."